Whos in Charge: Communication and Coordination in an Agriculture or Food Emergency

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Whos in ChargeCommunication and Coordination
in an Agriculture or Food Emergency

• June 21, 2007
• Dave Filson, Penn State University
• Abigail Borron, Purdue University

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The Importance of Food SafetyEDEN Survey

• Urgent
• Drinking water security 78
• Food security 64
• Individuals role 57
• Governments role 55
• Animal biosecurity 50
• Personal security 48
• Farm security 45
• Financial security 42
• Plant/crop biosecurity 37

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EDEN Homeland Security

• How likely do you think it is that an
  agricultural, food, or water bioterrorist attack
  will take place somewhere in the USA?
• Likely to Very Likely 86
• Unlikely to Very Unlikely 14

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EDEN Homeland Security

• How likely do you think it is that an
  agricultural, food, or water bioterrorist attack
  will take place in your county?
• Likely to very likely 22
• Unlikely to very unlikely 78

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Recent U.S. Disasters Cost Estimates

• 2005 Hurricane Katrina/Rita 140 B
• 1980 Drought 104 B
• 1988 Drought 92 B
• 2001 September 11 44 B
• 1992 Hurricane Andrew 45 B
• 1993 Midwest Flooding 31 B
• 1989 Hurricane Hugo 19 B

Disaster Cost estimates are difficult to acquire
and vary by source. Estimates in 2005 dollars.
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Foot and Mouth Disease Great Britain costs
32 Billion U.S. Estimates 24 to 140 Billion
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Emergency Issues

• An emergency is a situation
• where the community can
• resolve the problem with . . .
• their own resources.

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Disaster Issues

• A disaster is a situation that
• overwhelms a community's
• ability to respond and recover
• with existing resources.

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Day-to-Day Incidents

• On a day-to-day basis,
• incidents happen --
• they are investigated,
• solved, or determined
• not to be a threat.

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• For Immediate Release Office of the Press
  Secretary February 3, 2004
• Homeland Security Presidential Directive/HSPD-9
  Subject Defense of United States Agriculture
  and FoodJanuary 30, 2004
• Purpose
• (1) This directive establishes a national policy
  to defend the agriculture and food system against
  terrorist attacks, major disasters, and other
  emergencies.
• Background
• (2) The United States agriculture and food
  systems are vulnerable to disease, pest, or
  poisonous agents that occur naturally, are
  unintentionally introduced, or are intentionally
  delivered by acts of terrorism. Americas
  agriculture and food system is an extensive,
  open, interconnected, diverse, and complex
  structure providing potential targets for
  terrorist attacks. We should provide the best
  protection possible against a successful attack
  on the United States agriculture and food system,
  which could have catastrophic health and economic
  effects.

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Emergency Support Function
Mitigation Plant or Animal Care
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Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan
Interagency Communications

• Prevention
• Mitigation
• Preparedness
• Response
• Recovery

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Interagency Communications in food or
agriculture emergencies and disasters

• Action starts with detection!
• Public safety
• Economic safety

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High Suspect Plant Information Flow
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The silo philosophy
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Various Risks
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Spinach and Escherichia coli O157H7
As of 1 PM (ET) October 6, 2006, Friday, 199
persons infected with the outbreak strain of E.
coli O157H7 have been reported to CDC from 26
states. Among the ill persons, 102 (51) were
hospitalized.  Three deaths in confirmed cases
have been associated with the outbreak. Economic
costs 308 million
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Peanut Butter

• As of May 22, 2007, a total of 628 persons
  infected with an outbreak strain of Salmonella
  serotype Tennessee had been reported from 47
  states since August 1, 2006.  Local and state
  public health officials in multiple states, with
  assistance from CDC and the Food and Drug
  Administration (FDA), are continuing to
  investigate this outbreak caused by peanut
  butter, a new food source for salmonellosis in
  the United States. All remaining jars of Peter
  Pan or Great Value peanut butter with a product
  code beginning with 2111 should be discarded.

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Successes

• The food and agriculture sector has been very
  successful, dating back to the Meat Inspection
  Act of 1906.

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National Animal Health Laboratory Network CSREES
Funding Distribution
Pullman
Corvallis
St. Paul
Ithaca
Brookings
Madison
Lansing
Ames
Laramie
Harrisburg
Lincoln
Trenton
Logan
Georgetown
Reynoldsburg
Davis
Ft. Collins
Purdue
Manhattan
Raleigh
Frankfort
Hopkinsville
Athens
Tucson
Albuquerque
College
Baton
Jackson
Station
Rouge
Laboratories
Kissimmee
CORE NAHLN Laboratories
USDA Program Management APHIS Dr. Barbara
Martin CSREES Dr. Mark Robinson
Member NAHLN laboratories
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National Plant Diagnostic Network
North Eastern Plant Diagnostic NetworkCornell
University
North Central Plant Diagnostic NetworkMichigan
State University
Western Plant Diagnostic NetworkUniversity of
California, Davis
Great Plains Diagnostic NetworkKansas State
University
National Agricultural Pest Information
System Purdue University
Southern Plant Diagnostic NetworkUniversity of
Florida
Alaska, Hawaii and Pacific Territories
PR
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Challenges

• Action starts with detection.
• County-state-federal entities make communication
  more complex.
• Silos impede communication between agencies at
  all levels.
• Cautions to prevent panic or scares impede
  free-flow of information.

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Challenges

• Emergency managers must understand food and ag.
• Agriculture must understand emergency management.
• ICS, NIMS and NRP help
• County Comprehensive Emergency Management Plans
  lack substance.

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Challenges

• Complexity of the system
• Individual and agency abilities
• Understanding NRP-NIMS and CEMP

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Solutions

• Accept there will never be zero.
• Collect and share lessons learned
• Bring back real life incidents lessons are often
  lost and/or not acted upon.
• Analyze accountability and resource allocation.
• Remove barriers for internal and inter-agency
  communication.

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Solutions

• Improve interagency communications at the
  lowest level.
• Provide stop-gap measures. Find and address the
  weak spots.
• Use existing networks. Bring all of the players
  together.

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Solutions

• Develop real-world expertise sources that merge
  research and field applications to develop new
  solutions.

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• Plans are nothing
• planning is everything.
• Dwight D. Eisenhower

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• Thanks to
• Kavita M Berger, PhD
• Senior Program Associate
• and the

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David Filson Penn State Cooperative Extension
Emergency Preparedness and Response
Coordinator 401 Agricultural Administration
Building University Park, PA 16802 Phone
814-863-6424 Email DFilson_at_psu.edu
Abigail Borron Purdue University EDEN
Communication Specialist Department of Ag
Communications 615 West State Street Rm 211 West
Lafayette, IN 47907 Phone [phone]
Email aborron_at_purdue.edu